Tales of the West: REWRITE
by Blackheart214
Summary: The rewritten version of Tales of the West. Still couldn't think of a decent summary. Tidus/Yuna
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note****~ This is a rewrite of my story **_**Tales of the West**_**. I decided to go back and rewrite this story because I first wrote it years ago when I had just started writing. My skill back then was amateur at best. My writing has improved since then and decided that instead of continuing where this story let off, I would write it again and hopefully it will be better this time.**

**Summary~ Basically it's Final Fantasy X with an old western theme. Their will be saloons, high noon quick draw duels, whores, and whore houses, and all the other good stuff we've seen from great western films like **_**The Quick and the Dead**_** and **_**Wild Wild West**_**.**

**Disclaimer: No ownership over Final Fantasy X is implied.**

_**Tales of the West**_

**Chapter1: Stranded**

The Bikanel Desert was ablaze in the scorching heat of the sun. The heat had dried up what little water was left and trace of wildlife could be seen anywhere. Anyone traveling across the unforgiving desert without a quick mode of transportation would surely perish.

Someone, however, was barely holding on to life. He had tan skin, and dirty blonde hair. He wore a white shirt that was stained from sweat and dirt, brown trousers, and boots that were worn from the walking. His body was slouched over from exhaustion and it took a great amount of effort just to keep his head up. Not he could even see where he was going; his vision was hazy from the heat. He had been wandering the desert for nearly a whole day with nothing to do but keep moving forward and lament on how he winded up in this predicament.

Last night, he was in the city of Zanarkand. He was also winning big playing poker in the local saloon. He had successfully beaten everyone that had challenged him and took all their money. His last opponent, a rather shady looking character, laid down quite a large sum of gil, clearly confident that he would beat the young man. The young man, known as Tidus, had accepted the challenge. In the end, Tidus had beaten his opponent with a Royal Flush, stunning both the challenger and the crowd that had gathered to watch the game. Unfortunately for Tidus, the man didn't take to kindly to losing, especially in front of a crowd. It turned out that the man Tidus had beaten was the leader of one Zanarkand's many gangs and as soon as Tidus left the saloon, the leader and a few of his men jumped him. They bound and gagged him, tied his legs to a chocobo and sent it running off into the desert. The chocobo, of course, died hours after the hot sun had risen over the desert, leaving Tidus stranded.

He didn't even know where he was going. He had never been outside of Zanarkand; he was born and raised there. Despite his young age, Tidus had lived alone in the city. His mother died when he was seven and his father… well, Tidus didn't really care about his father, in fact he absolutely hated him. His father, Jecht, was mean to him as a kid and Tidus couldn't even remember a time when his father had ever once told him he loved him or even that he liked him. Just thinking about him made Tidus angry; angry enough to take his mind off the desert for a little while.

Soon, he noticed that everything started getting fuzzy. He started to feel lightheaded and had a hard time standing up. Finally his legs gave out and he fell to the ground. He tried to get back up but, his body wouldn't respond. He laid there, the hot sun beating down on him. He vision began to fade. Before everything went black he thought he saw a pair of black boots surrounded by red appear in front of him. He thought it was just his eyes playing tricks on him and then closed them.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note****~ I must admit that I'm a little disappointed in myself. I said I would rewrite this story and it would be better, but I also homed the chapters would be longer than they were before. I believe last time I wrote these first two chapters I hadn't even reached one thousand words. This time, chapter one was only around one hundred words longer and this one was only seventy-five words longer. Sorry everyone. I promise these chapters will get longer as the story progresses. And look on the bright side: short chapters mean quicker updates :)**

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**Chapter 2: Welcome To Besaid**

When Tidus first opened his eyes, he believed himself to be dead; dead and on the other side. He believed that there was no possible way he could have survived the desert. But why did death feel like a soft cozy bed and if he was dead, why was he still breathing? He quickly sat up and tried to get his bearings.

He noticed that he was in a relatively small room. Beside his bed was a nightstand with several cups of water sitting on top. He grabbed them and downed the contents of the cups one by one. He desperately needed some water and the cups that were left for him made him feel much better. After he was properly hydrated, he once again to wonder just where he was and how he had gotten there. He looked out the only window in the room, but the view was blocked by the building beside the one he was in.

He left the room and looked down the hallway. He saw that there were doors that led to other rooms. The hallway itself was sparsely decorated and some of the "questionable" sounds coming from a few of the other rooms indicated that this was no home. He came to the conclusion that he was in a hotel. As he neared the end of the hall, by the staircase, he heard the sounds of people talking and music playing. He went down the stairs and beheld the source of the merrymaking.

It was a saloon. The place was filled with people. There were people playing cards, drinking ale and whiskey, others having conversation amongst themselves, and some were flirting with women… scantily clad women. Some wore gowns, others wore small skirts and corsets, and some were hardly wearing anything at all. It seemed that this place was not only a hotel and a saloon, but a whorehouse as well.

'_That explains the noises upstairs,'_ he thought.

"Hey kid!" he heard someone call out to him.

He saw that it was a woman standing by the bar. She had black hair that covered most of the left side of her face and was also in a bun that had several decorated pins in it with five braided ponytails. Her eyes were reddish-brown and her lips were colored with purple lipstick. also noticed she was dressed rather indecently. She was wearing a black corset with no sleeves that revealed quite a bit of cleavage, a dress that didn't cover her front and knee high boots with heels.

"Uh, hello," he greeted lamely. "Who are you and where am I?" he asked, his gaze unintentionally drifting down towards her ample bosom.

"My name is Lulu, owner of the Mi'ihen Saloon, the finest saloon in Besaid, and my eyes," she said with a slap to his temple, "are up here."

_It's not like you make it easy _Tidus thought adverting his gaze. "Sorry. My name is Tidus by the way. But, wait you said Besaid?"

"Yes. You've never heard of it?"

"I've heard of it but, I've never been here."

"Where are you from?"

"Zanarkand," he answered. "I was attacked and left to die in the desert. How did I get here anyway? The last thing I remember was collapsing in the desert," he said trying to recollect the events of the day before.

"A man carried you in here. Said he found you lying on the ground half-dead and told me to take care of you until you came to," she explained.

"Who?" Tidus asked curiously.

"A man named Auron."

"Oh, well where is he?" Tidus asked, wanting to thank the man that had saved his life.

"Not sure; Auron comes and goes. He'll be back some time."

"Oh… anyway, do you know how I can get home?"

"All the way to Zanarkand?" she asked with a chuckle. "There is no way. No one can survive a journey that long through the Bikanel Desert."

"Then how am I supposed to get back home?" Tidus asked, getting panicked.

"There's a railroad being built; it comes all the way from Bevelle," she said, trying to calm him down.

"Is it going to Zanarkand?" Tidus asked growing hopeful. Lulu nodded with a small smile. "Okay, how long will it take?"

"It took the railroad ten years to get to here from Bevelle," Lulu stated, her smile faltering somewhat.

"Ten years?" Tidus shouted.

"Don't worry, that was along time ago. It shouldn't take no less than a year or so to finish."

Tidus sighed in despair. A year trapped in a strange place far away home… the though was terrible, but what options did he have.

"So what am I supposed to do until then?"

"Well, Auron asked me to take care of you, so I'll give you a room at a discount."

"Thanks," Tidus said with a grin. "How much?"

"One hundred gil a week," she answered.

At first, that didn't sound so bad, but when Tidus realized that he didn't have any money, his face fell.

"Don't worry," Lulu said, noticing his despair. "Auron already paid for your first week. That should give you plenty of time to find a job."

Tidus's face brightened up at that. That was one problem off his back for now.

"Until then," Lulu continued, "get yourself cleaned up; you're a mess."

Tidus examined himself. Indeed, he was filthy. His body and clothes were covered in stains of sweat and dirt. A bath sounded good to him right about now.

"There's a washroom upstairs. I'll have some clothes ready for you when you're finished."

"Thanks, Lulu."

With that, he headed upstairs for a much needed bath. As he made his way to the washroom, he did some thinking. He wondered if he would ever see Zanarkand again. He wondered how he would survive in place that he had never been in, who this "Auron" was, and what was he going to do for money in this place. He had been given a week to solve one of these problems and he was a little apprehensive since he had never worked a day in his life made his living by playing cards and the money his mother had left him, but really, how hard could it be?


End file.
